Michael Owen

[Joey Jones]

Michael Owen has touched the ball 26 times & had 1 shot (which was off target) since signing for Stoke 3 months ago. Via @dalejohnsonESPN

Why did Stoke even bother signing him? Total waste of time and money, he's probably on 20k a week.

[Angryred]

I reckon they have him on a pay as you play contract basis as they can't be that stupid to give that hobbit a fixed contract!

[Roboklopp]

If he was one of his beloved horses, he'd have been put down years ago...

[Shaggy]

To be fair to him this is a good read.

http://www.michaelowen.com/blog.html

Michael's Blog: 7th December 2012

Too Much Too Soon?

One topic that is never far from people's lips is “The next generation” After all, the kids of today will be the stars of tomorrow, representing our country in years to come. For this reason, it is essential that we, as a country, get it spot on when it comes to nurturing our young talent from raw potential to the finished article.

We have all heard the chorus of dissatisfaction many times before; it normally reaches fever pitch late on in June as our National team board the plane home, tail between their legs, while the Nation come to terms with a dose of reality as England bow out of another major tournament at the quarter final stage. A couple of weeks dissecting where it all went wrong follows, before most people come to the conclusion that we are technically not good enough to compete at the highest level and for that reason alone, our youth system and the coaches within it are to blame. Is this assumption fair?

There are many topics that are debated when it comes to considering the future of our National game. From the way we coach our kids to the amount of football we expose them to. I'm not one of those who think that every little detail is crucial to whether a child makes it or not. Kids are more adaptable than we give them credit for. If their boots aren't top of the range or the pitch isn't like a bowling green, that won't be the issue that prevents them from making the grade. I think that if a player is to make it to the top it's vitally important to have the fundamentals in place.

For the purpose of this blog, I'd like to mainly focus on the stresses and strains put on our youngsters during the transition from youth team player to first team regular.

Football has changed over the years. Life in general has. Long gone are the days when you get home from school, grab your ball and immediately head to the park knocking on as many doors as possible en route to conjure up the numbers for a 5-a-side. On my estate, it was a way of life. Fast forward to today and that same park is empty. Most parks I drive past are empty. You don't even see many kids playing in the street any more using the garage as a goal. So, what's the reason for this change?

First of all, the children of today have more choice. Computers, mobile phones, iPods and the rest were barely invented when I was a lad. TV was rubbish, you were lucky to see an hour of sport a week in those days and that was only if you were lucky enough to have your Dad let you stay up late to watch Match Of The Day! These days you can watch any sport at any time of the day and on virtually any device. These facts simply have to bring you to the conclusion that to some, it's as much fun staying in the house choosing what to play or watch next as opposed to getting out and actually taking part.

Secondly, the world has changed. My generation would be out and about all day, playing football down the park, riding our bikes or building dens in the local woods. As long as you were back for dinner at 7pm your Mum would be fine. It's my opinion that far less of that goes on nowadays and as a parent myself, I can understand why. I certainly wouldn't want my kids roaming the streets like I used to. But is this to the detriment of our future athletes? I think it has an effect. Taking part in these normal activities is where you learn. You can't be a good footballer and average at everything else. Running, jumping, throwing, catching and general skills that you put little thought into all add up when you take to the field. Coordination and balance are vital tools to possess in most sports and these skills should, sometimes unknowingly, be ingrained into us at an early age.

To combat these changes in behaviour, and to catch up with the nations currently leading the way, the FA, together with the football clubs have increased the amount of time that coaches can work with the kids at football clubs by roughly three times the amount than when I was at Liverpool's Academy. But is more necessarily better? Are young bodies able to cope with such demands? I know many people within the game who are concerned by the amount and more importantly the type of injuries that are occurring in our young players. Despite this, over time I am sure the clubs will find the right balance between work, rest and play and with the money our football clubs are investing into youth coaches and facilities, the results will be there for us all to see in the coming years.

For the select few who have the talent and mental strength to make it, what is the next step? What happens once you make the transition from academy prospect to first team squad member? Well, first of all you need to be managed well. The amount of football you are exposed to in 'the big league' is vital. Of course, it's easier to manage if you have a big squad full of quality players as there is no need for the manager to rely on a youngster week in week out to earn him the results he needs. This has been perfectly illustrated by Sir Alex Ferguson over the past 20 years with home grown talent such as Giggs, Beckham, Scholes, Butt, Neville to name just a few. For me, the most impressive part of these players respective careers is the longevity displayed. Surely that has been influenced by the way they have been managed from their academy days to today?

Only a couple of weeks ago I read with great interest an article that was written about me. Sir Alex had made some comments suggesting that I would have been a better player had I been managed more effectively in the early part of my career. I have to agree with most of what he said except the usage of the word 'better'. In my opinion, had I been managed differently I would have been at my best for longer as opposed to being a better player.

As a youngster, I was considered exceptional and in many ways, that was to my detriment. While I was playing every game available to me, there was another young kid in the Liverpool Academy called Steven Gerrard who was also showing huge potential. Unlike me, who was playing 80 odd games a year, Stevie just couldn't stay fit. I am convinced that this played to his advantage in the long run. His body just needed time to grow into itself and at that time it just couldn't take the stresses and strains of football. By contrast, I was a little pocket rocket that lapped up games. I couldn't get enough of it. Because of this, I would play a full season with Liverpool and then once the season was over, while everyone wrapped their best youngsters up to have a summer break, I was jetting off to play for England, sometimes playing 3 years above my age group at the highest level. This continued for a few years. I played week in week out without a break, for years.

When the time came to make my debut for Liverpool. I was mentally ready. I knew I had what it took to make it to the top and it was just a case of when Roy Evans saw fit to release the hand brake. I hit the ground running and won the Premier League Golden Boot in my first two seasons of first team football. Then, on a cold night in March ‘99 at Elland Road my body made me pay for pushing it to the limit too often. My hamstring snapped in two and it was at that point that my ability to perform unimpeded was finished. It didn't have to be that way. My rehabilitation was compromised due to our physio leaving the Club that summer and not being replaced until the following season and with no regular medical care during such a critical time, a routine injury was destined to restrict me for the rest of my career.

It is due to this factor (confirmed by many medical experts), that I have suffered multiple injuries since. People laugh when I say that I am not naturally injury prone. It is my genuine opinion that I have become injury prone due to overplaying at a young age, suffering an injury as a result and then having a dreadful rehabilitation at such a critical time. To back this up, I have done a little research!

I have looked at some of the British players who I consider to be among the best to have played in the Premier League and totalled each of their games up for club and country prior to their 24th birthday.

380 - Wayne Rooney
316 - Michael Owen
284 - Emile Heskey
261 - Jermaine Defoe
261 - Steven Gerrard
243 - Darren Bent
201 - Alan Shearer
184 - David Beckham
147 - Robbie Fowler
123 - Paul Scholes
112 - Ryan Giggs

Looking at the top of the chart, I would say that Rooney and Heskey were born to play early. Both had the physical strength to compete from a young age and both made an immediate impact. Lower down the list, in particular the players from Manchester United, are players who had less of a demanding schedule earlier in their career, which could explain the consistency in their performances over such a long period of time. Of course, over the past 20 years, Manchester United have had the luxury of rotating a fantastic squad of players whereas most other teams have had to rely so heavily on certain players that they play every minute of every game. This simply has to be a contributory factor when it comes to the likelihood of picking up injuries later on in a player’s career.

It's also apparent that myself and Ryan Giggs in particular, were blessed with raw pace as youngsters. This attribute, despite being a potent weapon, leaves you more vulnerable to muscle injuries. As with most things in life, the faster you do something, the more risks there are of things going wrong. We are all different shapes and sizes and one particular type of training or weight session won't suit everyone. Again, this is an important issue for a manager and his staff to recognise and adapting a programme to suit individual needs is a vital part of good management.

In my case, I certainly feel like I played 'Too Much Too Soon'. I cringe when I look back on a quote I came out with after Gerard Houllier 'rested' me for a game. "I will rest when I'm 40" I muttered in an interview. How wrong could I be? You can't force nature and nature has certainly forced me to “rest” far more than I would have wanted in the second half of my career. The problem is that as a young player you want to play every week and therefore it has to be the responsibility of the manager to take the decision to rest young players thereby giving them the best chance of a long and injury-free career.

Strangely, I enjoy looking back on my career thinking what might have been. There is no doubt I would have won more honours had I signed for Manchester United as a youngster. I am pretty confident I would have been at the height of my powers over a longer period of time too. But would I change anything if I could rewind the clock? Not a chance! The best years of my life were at Liverpool. Spells at Real Madrid, Newcastle, Manchester United and Stoke have given me a career to be proud of. Now it's time to finish it off in style!

[Alex]

Spells at Real Madrid, Newcastle, Manchester United and Stoke have given me a career to be proud of.

[Vermilion]

He's going to finish his career off in style too.

[Captain Stu]

[dom9]

I think it's an interesting point of view, and one we could do with heeding iro Sterling, Suso et al.

[Pablo]

It's a really good point he makes. I've made the same point several times before. You can't overplay youngsters. Their bodies just aren't ready for the change of playing the odd youth/reserve game, to a full Premier League season. It inevitably leads to serious injury. I said it all along with Wenger and Wilshere and it happened.

I'm now concerned we may do the same thing with Raheem Sterling.

[Vermilion]

Thought he said some players were born to play young ?

[Shaggy]

Yep, some. Those such as Rooney and Heskey, the more powerful lads.

[Vermilion]

Yep, some. Those such as Rooney and Heskey, the more powerful lads.

So judge each player on his merits then, seems obvious really.

It doesn't take long to see if a player is ready, and there are so many other things to take into consideration, like speedy players suffering more.

I don't think it's something people were'nt aware of tbh.

It's a bit simplistic imo, powerful young players can play early with no ill effects later in their career, while smaller players can't, not sure that is strictly the case, so many other things have an effect imo, like how an early injury is treated for instance.

[Captain Stu]

I think he has part of a point but I refuse to believe that his entire career has been ruined due to that one hamstring injury. I think he's masking a multitude of injuries with that one.

[Alex]

I think he was ruined with the Hamstring. He was run into the ground for a couple of years.

Edit: Just checked he played 84 games in 2 seasons for us when he broke through.

[Vermilion]

Actually, Did he even write the blog ?